By David Boclair, Correspondent
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Size matters. Particularly for a team trying to get to the big stage.
Siegel exploited advantages in height, width and depth along the front line Monday and whipped Cleveland 82-60 in a boys’ basketball sectional game. Four big men allowed the Stars to control the boards and score consistently near the basket.
Their efforts were completed by the perimeter play of Tyler Cutter, who led all scorers with 24 points.
As a result, Siegel (26-11) advanced to the Class AAA state tournament for the third time in four years.
“One thing I really worried about was (Siegel’s) size, because we’re not very big inside,” Cleveland coach Jason McCowan said. “We tried to use our quickness. The only thing is Siegel is just as quick, if not as quick as we are.”
Montori Hughes scored 15 points, Kerry Hammonds had 13, Levon Tate had 10 and T.J. Mitchell chipped in nine for the Stars. All four got the foul line at least once and contributed to a decisive edge in rebounding at both ends of the floor.
“I told those guys that Cleveland goes to the boards hard — they usually send four to the glass,” Stars coach Chris Harris said. “If they sent four and we got the rebound, we were trying to get the ball out. We thought we could beat them down the floor in transition.”
Hughes scored 12 points in the third quarter, including eight in a span of 1:14.
“I looked up and saw we were up 20 with about a minute to play (in the third quarter), and I’m thinking right here, ‘We’re going to the big dance, baby,’” Hughes said. “It feels good.”
Cleveland (7-26), which opened with a three-guard lineup, was not intimidated by the Stars’ front line and consistently tried to attack their 2-3 zone with penetration.
The Blue Raiders managed to get to the foul line for 22 shots, one fewer than Siegel. But they made only eight. Not once did a Cleveland player make two on a single trip to the line.
Terrell Parks had 21 points but was just 3-for-7 from the line.
“If we make our free throws, it changes the dynamic of the game, and we don’t have the play from behind,” McCowan said. “It just seemed like we were looking up a huge mountain the whole time.”
The game was tied only at 2-2. The Stars led by seven after one quarter, by 10 at intermission and by 18 at the start of the fourth period.
Cleveland’s best run came midway through the second and ended when Dominique Macon’s 3-pointer got it within four, 29-25, with 3:31 left in the half.
Harris called time out 27 seconds later, and the Stars scored six straight and eight of the next 10 points.
“What we tried to do was go back inside,” Harris said.
E-mail David Boclair at sports@timesfreepress.com
